Page 3 of Dawn Caravan
She knelt on the plush carpet before him and looked up with hooded eyes. “Sir, do I meet your approval?”
Her lips were already flushed and her eyes were dilated. What had led her to this life? Why did she enjoy the feel of fangs in her neck and lifeblood being sucked from her vein? Her face told him nothing, but her lips told the story.
“Yes.”
She rose and moved toward him, this time kneeling on the low cushion. “Would you like to feed from the neck or the wrist, sir?”
“Wrist.” He kept his voice even, but he could feel her disappointment.
“Your wish, sir.” She raised her wrist politely.
Ben turned to her and met her gaze. “Be comfortable.”
Excitement flared in her eyes. “Of course, sir.” She folded her legs to the side and leaned against the large back cushion before she held out her right wrist.
Through the entire exchange, the woman across the courtyard never took her eyes off him, and her bodyguard never looked at Ben directly.
Was she following him? Spying on him? Was she reporting to his sire?
To someone else?
Ben took the woman’s wrist in his hand and warmed his skin to a nearly feverish degree. He saw goose bumps rise on the woman’s arm, and a slight shiver ran through her when he put his lips to her wrist.
Since his hurried and violent congress with Tenzin immediately after his turning, he hadn’t indulged his roaring sexual desires. Like his hunger, sex felt like a weakness. He’d never been a man led around by his dick, and immortality wasn’t the time to start.
He didn’t close his eyes when he bit into her wrist, but he sent a wave of amnis over her skin to give her the pleasure she wanted. The electrical current that controlled his amnis was powerful, far more so than what would be normal for a vampire his age.
Ben Vecchio was the son of an ancient king, the only son of Zhang Guo, the first child he had sired in over four thousand years.
Raw power flooded out of him and onto the woman, making her gasp and arch her back in pleasure. An involuntary cry left her lips.
Ben took his mouth away. “Be quiet.”
She didn’t say a word, but she nodded. Her cheeks were flushed and her lips swollen. Her chest above the modestly cut dress she wore was red.
He put his mouth back to her wrist and licked up the drips of blood that had run down her arm, careful not to make a mess. Then he latched onto her vein and drank in leisurely sips, his eyes still locked on the woman across the courtyard.
I see you. You see me. What do you want?
The only response the vampire had was to raise a carefully groomed eyebrow in his direction. She watched Ben feeding from the human with clear interest, a small smile playing around the corners of her mouth.
The woman he fed from was silent next to him, but she twisted in pleasure, her body heavy against his. She was panting and tears leaked from the corners of her eyes. Her body shook with silent tremors of climax as Ben slowly fed.
Carefully. Deliberately. He felt the living blood splash against his throat like water tossed on a fire. Her taste reminded him of port wine. Rich. Sweet. He focused on the physical act of drinking. He focused on the sensation of his throat relaxing as the blood quenched his burning hunger. He fought the rising sexual desire that was inevitable.
He glanced at the woman who fed him from the corner of his eye. Watching her pleasure was the only release he allowed himself.
Was it a power trip? Yes. He gave humans pleasure and took nothing but sustenance. It was a trade he could live with. The woman gave her blood freely and received sexual pleasure and financial compensation in return.
She was exhausted by the time he finished feeding. She slid down to the cushions and tried to lay her head on his lap, but Ben nudged her onto a pillow.
The woman looked up. “Nothing?”
“I’m fine.” He licked his lips and ran a thumb over them. He couldn’t abide dried blood on his lips. “Would you like some tea?”
She nodded.
“I’ll order some.” He looked back across the courtyard, but he didn’t see his watcher or her guard. A sweep of his eyes around the dark veranda proved fruitless.
